معرفی
Michael Novak is an Adjunct Professor in the Learning Sciences and MSEd Programs at Northwestern University's School of Education and Social Policy, and a Senior Curriculum Developer for the Next Generation Science Storylines project. He holds a BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), with early career experience in engineering and autonomous systems R&D.
Transitioning to education in the 1990s, Novak taught middle school science/math while designing teacher professional development programs focused on computational science integration. His career shifted to curriculum development, collaborating on NSF-funded projects like IQWST and Project-Based Inquiry Science. At Northwestern, he designs NGSS-aligned instructional materials using inquiry-based approaches and agent-based modeling tools.
Research emphasizes instructional materials design, teacher development, and fostering student agency through three-dimensional learning. Notable contributions include developing the Storyline instructional model and co-authoring NGSS-design badge units for OpenSciEd. His work prioritizes classroom environments where students collaboratively explore phenomena through evidence-based reasoning.
Awardees include the 2015 PAEMST Finalist, Golden Apple Fellow (2014), and National Board Certification in Mathematics (2010). He has led projects funded by NSF and AAAS, contributing to over 14 peer-reviewed publications on science education pedagogy and curriculum design.
